The Stainless Steel Rat's LiveJournal

The Rat who is made of Stainless Steel

Grave of the Fireflies (1998). Based on the semi-autobiographical book by Akiyuki Nosaka and directed by Isao Takahata. The film is initially set just after World War 2, in Japan. At a railway station a teenage boy is propped up against a column, dying of starvation. Some hours later the boy has died and a station cleaner goes through his belongings and finds a tin. He takes the tin outside and throws it into the grass and the spirit of a young girl appears, followed by the spirit of the teenage boy. The girl picks up the tin, the boy takes her hand, and they get on a train. The rest of the story is told in flashback. There's not a lot I feel I can say about Grave of the Fireflies. It's an incredibly well written and powerful story, but also an incredibly sad one. If you don't mind animation or very sad stories then it's a gem. 5/5 (Excellent)